Online poker continues to be one of the most popular games played over the internet in the country. In October 2022, the state of Michigan saw online gaming gross $192m, of which poker took up a big portion. But the online poker industry hasn’t always had the full trust of the American people. Back in 2011, there were many players enrolled in websites, and then one day, the government shut down every major site, effectively wiping out the entire industry! That day went down in history as Black Friday and gave a bad stigma to online poker for millions of players.
Over a decade has passed since the major shutdown, and enthusiasts of the game are slowly beginning to return online. While numerous websites and apps are offering poker once again, there still remains some myths about the industry, which may or may not be true. We’ll take a look at some of the most common ones and see if we can debunk them.
Myth #1 Online poker is illegal
While this may have been true in the past (2011), it’s not true anymore. Many states have already begun discussing the idea of legalizing online poker. As of this writing in 2022, seven states have legalized online poker: Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Delaware, and West Virginia.
These states have passed legislation to allow online poker websites and apps, so playing poker with real money online is completely legal. So long as you are located within state lines, you can safely engage in online poker. Myth – debunked!
Myth #2 Online poker is rigged
Some people claim that online poker is rigged, it’s impossible to come out a winner, and the websites cheat. There may have been some instances in the past where businesses were caught cheating their patrons, but current laws and regulations make it virtually impossible to repeat those mistakes.
If it is a licensed business, it must abide by the rules and operate in accordance with each state’s regulatory board. For example, in the state of Nevada, the Nevada Gaming Commission and the Nevada Gaming Control Board form a two-tiered system charged with regulating the gaming industry throughout the state. Authorities like these are the ones that protect all those that partake in gaming from illegal criminal activity, thus ensuring that online poker is not rigged. Myth – debunked!
Myth #3 Online poker is full of bad beats
There’s a common myth that if you play online poker, you’ll get nothing but bad beats. If you’re not familiar with the term, a poker bad beat is where you start off with a very strong poker hand but still end up losing. While it’s impossible to win every poker hand, no matter how skilled you are, bad beats happen to everyone, as it’s just part of the game.
In fact, when analyzed from a different perspective, every bad beat story is an example of how overconfident the player was and how they misunderstood the odds. We’ve never heard Phil Ivey, who’s one of the biggest online winners of all time, claim that online poker is full of bad beats. Myth – debunked!
Myth #4 Online poker is not safe
So long as the online poker sites are legitimate and operate within their licensed jurisdiction, they are safe to use. The online poker industry is heavily regulated to ensure operators meet rigorous licensing, security checks and regulatory requirements to stay in business. The regulations include making sure that players will never get any malware or viruses from using their websites, thus ensuring that online poker is safe for all players! Myth – debunked!
Online poker is on the rise once again, and it’s safe to play; make sure you’re using a legitimate site! Of course, risks are involved, so read each website’s terms and conditions before going all-in.
We hope you’ve enjoyed these insights, but if you’d prefer to stick to our core topics, there are plenty of food articles to be found on the site.